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Robert Donnell Bone (1832-1892) was born in Wilson County, Tennessee, and came to Nacogdoches County in 1841 with his mother and stepfather. He and his brothers and sister moved in with his older sister when she married John Winstead Paine in 1846. After a serious illness of pneumonia, R. D. Bone rode horseback to Tennessee and entered the University at Nashville Medical School (which later became Vanderbilt University) in 1854 and returned to Douglass, Texas, to practice medicine after graduating in 1858. That same year he married Griselda Minerva Burk (1841-1912) who was also from Tennessee and had moved to Nacogdoches County, Texas, with her family in 1848. On November 25, 1861, Dr. Bone was appointed to serve as Assistant Surgeon of the 12th Texas Volunteer Infantry, Col. Overton Young's Regiment at Camp Hebert, Hempstead, Austin County, Texas. He felt it was his duty to serve the cause of the Confederacy and eagerly attended his post. As revealed in the following letters exchanged with his wife while on active duty in the Civil War, it soon became clear that he would have to contend with inadequate provisions, boring camp routine and confusing orders. "The Fever", dysentery, measles and exposure were Dr. Bone's patients' main medical problems; his regiment was not involved in any serious fighting. When he resigned his commission on March 7, 1863, in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, he went back to Douglass, Texas, to practice medicine. Dr. Bone also bought cotton and cattle and took them to New Orleans each fall to be sold. Minerva was Post Mistress in Douglass from 1866-1867. Only six of the Bone's 12 children reached adulthood, and two of their sons graduated from the University at Nashville Medical School exactly 50 years after Dr. Bone did. At least eight of his descendants have followed him in serving the medical profession. (Aiken, Roy L. (Pete). "Bone Family." In Nacogdoches County Families, 172. Dallas, Tx.: Curtis Media Corporation, 1985.)

Scope and Content Note

Included in the collection of letters between Dr. Bone and Minerva are letters to the Bones from family and friends, report forms from the post office at Douglass, and two poems (probably written by Dr. Bone). Typescripts for most of the papers in the collection are in a booklet in Box 2. Several 19th century newspapers belonging to Dr. Bone are cataloged and shelved with the newspaper bundles.

State of Texas Nacogdoches Co March the 9 1862 My Dear Dr. Bone I received your letter the other day dated the 21st and 26th, which gave me great satisfaction to hear from you, and to hear that were well. I was afraid that you were sick, but [am] now relieved. I want you to write as often as you can, for I fear the mail will be stopped. Oh, how dreadful that will be to me, when I can’t hear from you, but I hope the good Lord will take good care of us and our little boys. Dear, I know you want to see them for they are your own Dear little ones. Honey, they grow like little pigs. We are all well, Jim and Francis are here tonight [and] they are well. Jim gave me the little box of needles, and the two little dollars and your letter. Oh, how precious they are to me. You don’t know how much good it does me to get something from you. Jim gave the other to George for him to get it changed. Honey, you don’t know how good I love you, I love you better than this whole world. If we could be spared to live together we would be happy, yes, I know we would! Honey, you must take good care of yourself. Sunday night Mr. Judkins brought his old lady home the other day, the one that lived down at Homer. The men are making up companies here, fast. I can’t tell you all that are going, but I will name some: Foster Bone, Armey, George Jones, John P., Albert King, Lee Park, Felix McKnight, Hardy White, Uncle John, Lewis P. Murphy... they are most all going, too tedious to mention. Mr. Baker will tend to Foster’s crop, I reckon he will live where Armey lived. Levica will live at Seney’s. The men will meet at Douglass tomorrow to be sworn in, I want to go out there tomorrow. I will write again, when Jim goes to start, and send it by him. I am sorry to hear about Pilot’s getting away, he has not come home but I am in hopes that you will get him. Ma sends her best respects to you. About your business; it is like you left it. Our house is like it was nothing doing, yet the war is the object here now. I fear we will have hard times here if all the men go off, but I hope we will be spared, if it is the good Lord’s will, if not, we will have to go. Oh, may the good Lord bless you my Dear husband. Goodbye, my lovely husband. G. M. Bone

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